With no Utah Valley team advancing past the quarterfinals of the state football playoffs, many considered this past season as a down year.
Individually, however, many local athletes still had an exceptional season. While many of the local stars might be overlooked on the state level in regards to honors, several have already verbally committed to play college football and are among the state's top talent.
In picking the 2005 Deseret Morning News All-Utah Valley prep football team, the toughest choices were in the wide receiver, defensive back and linebacker positions. It was a difficult decision for several spots, and several players who were left off the first team were considered strongly. Those being named as one of the best of the rest should still feel honored.
Lone Peak leads the way with five selections on this year's team, followed by Timpview and Orem with four picks each. Provo, Mountain View and American Fork each had three players make the first team.
Most valuable player
MVP — BILLY BURGESS, QB, Lone Peak: Those who watched the Knights' senior captain play say he didn't do any one thing great — but did all of the things that a quarterback is supposed to do very well. Most importantly, he provided leadership to the Region 4 champions, and when the Knights needed a big play, Burgess was usually the one who came through either throwing the ball or running it.
"I really think our team would not have been the same without Billy Burgess," coach Monte Morgan said.
For the year, Burgess threw for 1,076 yards and 11 touchdowns and ran for 681 yards and nine touchdowns.
Offense
BEN BATEMAN, QB, Timpview: The quick, elusive and accurate throwing senior was the perfect fit for the T-Birds' spread offense. He led the valley with 24 touchdown tosses and completed almost 60 percent of his passes for 1,982 yards. Also rushed for 454 yards and four touchdowns.
AUSTIN HAWS, RB, American Fork:The quick and speedy back excited fans with his kick returns and elusive runs. Finished the season with 612 yards rushing. Also caught 17 balls for 120 yards. He scored a combined eight touchdowns.
AUSTIN ALDER, RB - Provo:As the valley's top rusher, Alder was the key to Provo's ball-control offense. He finished with 1,066 yards on the ground and nine touchdowns. He also caught 11 passes for 124 yards and threw four passes with two completions.
BRENNAN FOSTER, WR, Springville: Gradually became the Red Devils' go-to guy as the season progressed. With dependable hands, Foster finished with 44 catches for 676 yards and four touchdowns. Also had 99 tackles and four interceptions as a defensive back.
BRYAN GONZALEZ, WR, Orem: Finished as the valley's top receiver in catches, with 75. At 6-foot-5, he was a threat deep — with a 67-yard catch — and effective on the short route. He averaged almost nine yards per reception. Had nine touchdown catches.
David Jackson, WR, Timpview: Not only one of the state's top placekickers, but a top threat catching the ball as well. Tallied 39 catches for 640 yards and eight touchdowns, and averaged nearly 17 yards per reception. Had five picks on defense.
Sam Thomas, WR, Timpanogos: Many feel Thomas has the most-reliable hands in the valley. He's one of those receivers who catches the ball good in traffic. Finished with 54 receptions for 954 yards and eight touchdowns. Also had six picks on defense.
Peter Tuitupou, TE, Mountain View: Playing on both sides of the ball, Tuitupou had 28 catches for 391 yard and five touchdowns. He was one of the most reliable for the mid-length gain on a third down. He also had 51 tackles, three caused fumbles and eight sacks on defense.
Mosese Lavaki, OL, Provo: Perhaps best at tying up lineman so Provo's linebackers could do their thing. But on the offensive side, Lavaki anchored the line of an option team that averaged nearly 400 yards of offense per game.
Chase Hansen, OL, Lone Peak: The 6-foot-2, 190-pound lineman is by no means big for his position. The senior's blocking skills and fundamentals, however, anchored one of the valley's top offensive lines.
Ryan Freeman, OL, Orem: The 6-foot-4 280-pound senior is considered by most as the valley's best blocking lineman. Will likely be wearing a BYU uniform next season. Also had 50 tackles on defense, four sacks and two blocked PATs.
Houston Reynolds, OL, Timpview: Even as an underclassman, Reynolds used his knowledge of blocking to anchor another outstanding T-Birds line. Led team with 44 pancake blocks. Sure to follow his brothers to play Division I football.
Defense
Jordan Stephan, DB, Lone Peak: Stephan's statistics are not overwhelming, but that's mainly because teams would not throw in his direction. Still, he finished with four interceptions, one fumble recovery and 29 tackles. He is the valley's top pass defender and maybe the best in Utah.
Parker Tycksen, DB, Lone Peak: Teams that played the Knights had to throw somewhere, which kept Tycksen busy. He caused two fumbles, recovered one and picked off a team-high six passes. He also had 55 tackles.
Brad Nichols, DB, Pleasant Grove: Starred on both sides of the ball with 37 catches for seven TDs, and 36 tackles, four interceptions and two fumble recoveries. In a win over Timpanogos he had two picks, two fumble recoveries and a touchdown catch in one game.
Preston Phillips, LB, Timpview: One of the top all-around players in the state as a three-year starter. Played almost the entire season with a torn ACL, yet still had 44 tackles and four sacks. Also finished with 43 receptions for 674 yards and eight touchdowns.
Benson Laumatia, LB, Mountain View: The Bruins senior anchored an effective linebacker corps with 65 tackles, two caused fumbles, one fumble recovery and seven sacks. Many of his tackles were for a loss.
Tom Steele, LB, Orem: The aggressive and quick linebacker posted impressive numbers on both sides of the ball. Had an amazing 70 solo tackles, 51 assisted tackles, two sacks, a fumble recovery and an interception. Also caught 21 passes and rushed for 666 yards and four touchdowns.
Aaron Binks, LB, Spanish Fork:On a team depleted by injuries, the hustling and hard-hitting Binks was the Dons' defensive leader with 48 tackles, five sacks, two interceptions and one fumble recovery for a touchdown.
McKay Frandsen, LB, American Fork: One of the most vicious defensive players in the valley. Tallied 103 tackles, with four sacks and one interception. Also caught five passes for 45 yards and carried the ball three times for 15 yards.
Mike Muehlmann, DE, American Fork: The University of Utah-bound senior gave blockers fits and had 73 tackles and 11 sacks on the season. He also caught 30 passes as a tight end for 355 yards and four touchdowns.
Garrett Cannon, DE, Payson: On a team that struggled, Cannon starred. Opponents seldom ran his way. The 6-foot-4 senior played every minute for the Lions this season, compiling 41 tackles, seven sacks, two forced fumbles and two recoveries.
Sterling Coons, DT, Lone Peak: The big 275-pound senior lineman was one of the valley's toughest to run against. By season's end he had compiled more than 100 tackles and eight sacks. He also caused three fumbles and recovered one lose ball.
Zeke Wily, DT, Orem: Another of the valley's great players that teams avoided in their offensive schemes. Still, the 6-foot-5 315-pound Division I talent finished the season with 53 tackles and two sacks. His biggest asset was causing opposing QBs to panic.
Specialists
Returns — Taft Morley, Spanish Fork: Played Mr. Everything for the Dons with 492 total kick return yards, and 54 catches for 680 yards and seven touchdowns. Also had six interceptions as a cornerback.
Punts — Danny Bell, Provo: Punted 18 times for an average of 41.1 yards per kick. Had seven punts downed inside the 20-yard line and had a 71-yard punt against Timpview.
Placekicker — Brian Smith, Mountain View: A powerful leg who never did get the shot at the state record. Finished with eight field goals, including two from 47 yards. Also kicked a state-record five field goals in one game against Springville. Converted 17 of 20 PATs.
Best of the rest
Griff Robles, QB, Spanish Fork; Riley Allred, LB, Springville; Griffin Miller, DB, Timpview; Spencer Nielsen, RB/WR, Payson; Gavin Jones, DB, Orem; Benson Purcell, OL, Provo; Tyler Bills, LB, Springville; Steven Jensen, WR, Lone Peak; Eldon Belknap, OL, Springville; Zach Fox, WR, Spanish Fork; Stephen Paea, DL, Timpview; Daniel Le, LB, Timpview; Taylor Orton, LB, Provo; Colton Fenton, LB, Lehi; John Lyon, OL, Spanish Fork; Henrique Silva, WR, Lehi; David DeGraffenried, OL, Payson; Warner Jarman, QB, Provo; Jackson Owen, RB, Timpview; Jason Golightly, QB, Orem; Matt Hurley, LB, Lone Peak; Tyson Buck, LB, Lone Peak; Blake Cordon, RB/LB, American Fork; Nathan Curtis, LB, Timpanogos; Zed Mendenhall, LB/FB, Lone Peak; Derick Shumway, LB, Mountain View; Jeremy Sondrup, DE, Pleasant Grove; Raymond Mounga, RB, Mountain View; Eric Sweat, OL, Pleasant Grove; David Olsen, WR/K, American Fork
E-mail: jimr@desnews.com